Franklin had never touched an alcoholic drink in his life up until his wedding day when he sampled the punch prepared by a young Ted Kennedy. Ever since then he's had a martini in his hand. He may or may not have had a stroke in later years (Eleanor has alluded to both possibilities), but either way he is quite mentally interesting. Some examples of his eccentricities include...

However, sometimes Franklin is quite intelligent and shows great leadership. When he and his wife were stranded on a deserted island, Franklin built a country club out of the palm trees and bamboo on the island, complete with ape tennis pro.

Franklin and Eleanor have their millions of dollars spread around in many different companies. They own factories that make cigarettes, nicotine patches, toxic waste, and medicines. In case of their deaths, Franklin has set things up so that his son Jay inherits the family businesses.